Finance

Wedding Future Value Monthly Savings Calculator (5 Years)

Estimate the future value of regular monthly savings. This wedding version uses a 5-year planning term as its starting point.

This Future value is the total your regular monthly deposits grow to by the end of the term you entered, including the interest earned along the way, so it is larger than the total you paid in whenever the interest rate is above zero.

Formula

Future value uses the monthly rate and the number of monthly deposits to grow each deposit with interest.

How it works

Each monthly deposit earns interest from the month it is made until the end of the term.

Worked example

Monthly deposit $500, annual rate 6 percent, term 5 years. The monthly rate is 6 percent divided by 12, which is 0.5 percent a month, and the number of deposits is 5 times 12, which is 60 months. Using the page formula, the future value is $500 times one plus 0.005 to the power of 60, minus one, divided by 0.005, which gives $34,885.02. That is the calculator output for these defaults. The couple pays in $30,000 in total, so $4,885.02 of the future value is interest. Without any interest, reaching the same $34,885.02 would need $581.42 a month for 60 months.

Who this term suits for a wedding: a couple building a near-term wedding fund, such as a wedding planned in about 5 years, a honeymoon, or a venue deposit that must be ready soon.

FAQs

How does monthly saving grow?
Regular deposits grow because each deposit earns interest, and that interest then earns more interest.

Is this wedding calculator exact?
No, it is an estimate for planning only, based on the numbers you enter.

Are these figures financial advice?
No, they are estimates for planning only, not financial advice. Check with a qualified adviser for decisions involving large sums.

Is $500 a month for 5 years enough for a wedding fund?
At the page defaults it reaches $34,885.02, of which $4,885.02 is interest on $30,000 of deposits. Whether that is enough depends on the wedding budget: a $50,000 wedding would still be about $15,114.98 short, so the couple would need a larger deposit, a longer term, or a smaller budget.

Why is the interest only $4,885.02 over 5 years?
Because interest has only 60 months to compound. Early deposits earn interest for nearly the full 5 years, but later deposits earn it for only a few months, so the total interest stays small compared with the $30,000 paid in.

What if wedding plans change and a deposit is missed?
Missing deposits lowers the future value twice over: the missed $500 is gone, and so is all the interest it would have earned. One missed deposit early on costs more than one missed near the end, because the early deposit had longer to grow.

Estimates only, not financial advice. Figures are approximate and do not include all fees, taxes, or changing rates unless stated.